Faith and Promises
by emergencyfan
Summary: Sheppard’s team runs into an old friend of Teyla’s while on a previously unexplored planet, but sinister secrets lurk beneath the surface. Will the team be able to uncover them before it’s too late?
1. Chapter 1

I don't own Stargate Atlantis or its characters. They belong to MGM.

Thanks to Jen for the beta!

* * *

**F****AITH AND PROMISES**

Sheppard's team and Dr. Weir were in the control room studying the latest MALP images currently being broadcast from the next planet slated for exploration.

"What? It looks okay to me." Sheppard shrugged while he watched the massive ruins slide past the screen as the MALP made a three hundred and sixty degree sweep of the area. Something in the area was causing some interference with the transmission but they could easily see that it was the biggest set of Ancient ruins that had been discovered so far in their explorations.

"Notice anything _missing_?" Rodney's voice dripped with sarcasm as he turned to the Colonel.

"There is no dialing device," said Teyla, studying the image intently though the mild static.

Rodney tapped his index finger on his nose. "Give the lady a prize."

"Is that really a problem? The jumpers have built-in DHDs, right?" Sheppard reasoned as he sipped on his coffee.

"True," agreed Rodney. "But it's not so much that the DHD is missing…"

"_Why_ is it missing?" Ronon finished the scientist's thought.

Sheppard leaned back against the console. "There could be a hundred reasons."

Rodney screwed his face up in displeasure. "Well the last time, the reason was that it was a penal-colony-slash-wraith-buffet."

"He has a point, Colonel," said Weir, tipping her head, but giving him a conspiratorially wry smile at the scientist's sharp tone.

Sheppard looked at the images again. "If we're going to stop exploring unknown planets because past missions didn't go perfectly, we might as well pack up and go home."

-o-

Ronon, Teyla, Sheppard and Rodney stood, backs toward each other, P-90s pointed outward at the circle of weapon-wielding natives who surrounded them. Masses of spears, small arrows, and blowguns were pointed in their direction. They had barely made it twenty feet from the jumper when all hell broke loose. Now, they might as well be twenty miles from it. Suddenly the images of the ancient ruins that the MALP had sent back didn't seem quite so exciting any more.

"We might as well pack up and go home," came a snide whispered comment from McKay.

Sheppard ignored him and shifted uncomfortably, his weapon was aimed but he knew there was no chance of getting the upper hand in this situation. They might take a few of the natives with them, but that would be the extent of their defense. "Hey, we know when we're not wanted. We can take a hint," he said, eyeing the group surrounding them. He could feel Rodney shift nervously behind him. "How about we just leave the way we came, no harm, no foul?" he suggested reasonably. He knew the chances of the natives understanding the sports term was unlikely, but he was hoping they'd at least pick up on his tone. Apparently they didn't because they continued to glare menacingly.

"Teyla?" came a happy cry. A tall, attractive, muscular man pushed his way through the crowd of spears and arrows to stand in front of the Athosian. While he was dressed similarly to the natives, it was clear he was not of their race, though they treated him deferentially and made room for him, still eyeing Sheppard's group distrustfully.

Teyla squinted at the man uncertainly. "Melosh?"

Completely ignoring the gun in her hand, he grabbed her in a tight embrace and then rested his forehead against hers. "The gods have answered my prayers." He quickly released the Athosian, who stumbled a bit at the suddenness of the greeting. Taking her hand in his, he raised it high in the air and turned towards the natives, yelling out happily, "This is Teyla Emmagan. We are promised!"

The natives looked from one to another and slowly lowered their weapons. Sheppard's group cautiously did the same. The colonel cocked an eye in Teyla's direction and asked out of the side of his mouth. "Promised?"

Teyla shot him a slightly panicked look before returning her attention to the man who was still gripping her hand tightly. "Melosh, it has been a long time. Many things have changed…"

The man's face took on a crestfallen expression and he released her hand. "You have already performed the bonding ceremony with another?" He suspiciously eyed the three men with her, trying to decide which one was the most likely rival for her affections.

"No…" she began.

He smiled and waved away the rest of what she was going to say. "Then it is unimportant."

Teyla's mouth opened and closed like a gaping fish. Sheppard hid a grin at her discomfort. It was a rare occurrence to see the Athosian so flustered and there _were_ times her composure could be a little, well, let's face it, annoyingly serene. He stepped in. "I'm Lieutenant Colonel John Sheppard, this is Dr. Rodney McKay, and Ronon Dex," he said, introducing the two men.

Melosh gave Sheppard a calculated look, barely glanced at Rodney, and then gave Ronon a stare containing a subtle alpha-male bristle that the runner instinctively returned.

Teyla had finally managed to regain some sense of composure. "Melosh, how did you come to be here, and where are Tenon and Hawliot?"

"It is a long story." He was completely focused on her again. "Come to my house, and I will tell you my tale and you can tell me of yourself and Athos. I have missed home."

Teyla bit her lip and glanced at Sheppard.

"Your friends may come, as well," Melosh added, almost as an afterthought before taking her hand again and pulling her through the crowd. Without so much as a backward glance at the three men, he began to lead her through the boulder-strewn meadow and down the hill towards some distant smoke, all the while talking rapidly and excitedly. The natives fell in behind the two as if they were some type of honor guard.

Sheppard blinked and then exchanged looks with the rest of his abandoned team. "Looks like we're invited to lunch," he quipped as he started to follow the group. Ronon and McKay fell in beside him.

"Promised?" Ronon asked Sheppard, frowning suspiciously at the unfamiliar term.

The colonel shrugged in reply and adjusted his pack's straps.

-o-

Melosh's hut was the largest one in the village. The inside was well appointed and neatly maintained. One of the natives must have run ahead because there was already a table set with several steaming dishes.

"Sit," their host invited, briefly acknowledging the men for the first time since their initial introduction, and he waved at a crude wooden bench that spanned one side of the table. As Teyla began to take her seat, he grabbed her arm and pulled out a well-cushioned chair near his own and gestured for her to sit as well. The various dishes were passed around the table in awkward silence as Melosh gazed raptly at Teyla, his eyes intent on her face. He intercepted her hand and picked up a morsel from her plate and fed it to her, oblivious to her discomfort.

"So," Sheppard said, pursing his lips and nodding as he looked over the variety of dishes on the table. "You and Teyla are promised?" The last word came out a little higher in pitch and was accompanied by raised eyebrows and the barest hint of a smirk.

Melosh reached out and grabbed Teyla's hand again, bringing it to his lips and continued to gaze at her with undisguised admiration. "Yes."

"That's like what? Engaged?" asked McKay, frowning in annoyance at the inevitably imprecise terminology used by other races. He helped himself to some sort of rice dish and sniffed at it unenthusiastically.

Teyla managed to slide her hand out of the man's grasp, taking the bowl that Ronon passed to her as the excuse to break contact, and spooned some of the food onto her plate before passing it on. She kept her eyes on her plate as she toyed with the food. "That was long ago, Melosh, we were little more than children then, following the wishes of our fathers."

Melosh ducked his head to catch her eye but didn't attempt to recapture her hand. "It was _my_ wish as well." He smiled. "And as I recall, you voiced no objections."

She raised her head. "As I said before, many things have changed. When you did not return through the ancestral ring, we feared the worst. You still have not told me where Tenon and Hawliot are," she said, changing the subject.

Melosh's face took on a harsh expression. "They were not as fortunate as I. The gods struck them down shortly after we arrived."

Teyla frowned slightly at the strange phrasing. "I am sorry to hear that. I was fond of them."

"And of _me_ as well, of course," Melosh teased gently.

"Of course," Teyla agreed, cautiously.

"What, _exactly_, happened to them?" asked Ronon, suspicious as usual.

Melosh shook his head. "I do not wish to talk of such things now. This is a happy time!" He covered Teyla's hand with his and while she looked uncomfortable, there was no way for her to pull away again without the risk of offending him.

-o-

Once they had finished their meager meal, Teyla turned to their host. "I would really like to know what happened once you left though the Ancestral ring."

"Later. First, tell me of Athos and yourself," he said, excitedly.

Teyla's face grew still. "Our village on Athos is no more, Melosh. The Wraith attacked our people and we had to flee through the ring of the Ancestors."

"Where did you go?"

"Atlantis…" She caught her teammates' eyes, "…at first, but the Wraith attacked there as well so we had to destroy the city and find yet another planet."

"You destroyed the city of the gods?" asked Melosh, incensed.

"We destroyed the city of the Ancients rather than let it fall into the hands of the Wraith," she said defensively. "We would not have done so unless we had no other choice."

Melosh still looked a little shocked at the revelation but he patted her hand. "Of course not. You are not as lucky as we are, to have gods that protect you from the Wraith."

Sheppard's team all exchanged glances at that revelation.

"And, um, how _exactly_ do they do that?" asked Rodney.

Melosh shrugged. "They are gods."

"Of course," said the scientist, rolling his eyes in frustration. The glance Sheppard shot him kept him from adding any further comment.

"How about _your_ story?" suggested Ronon, picking his teeth with a leftover bone from his plate.

"Yes," encouraged Teyla. "I am eager to know your tale."

"I arrived here..."

"With Tenon and Hawliot," she amended.

"Yes, yes, of course...with Tenon and Hawliot. They have been gone so long, I had almost forgotten."

"What happened to them?" asked Sheppard.

"They angered the gods and paid the price."

Rodney squinted. "And by 'paid the price' you mean...?"

"They are no more," clarified Melosh, becoming angry. "I do not wish to discuss this any longer." He turned to gaze to Teyla's eyes. "It is a time to rejoice, not think of unfortunate things that have long since passed. The gods have rewarded my years of devotion by bringing you here."

Teyla frowned again at the strange turn of phrase. Her people revered the ancestors, yes, but normally stopped short of worshipping them as gods.

"Um, actually, it was the ruins that got our attention," McKay piped up.

Melosh's eyes narrowed briefly; obviously unhappy at the interruption.

"It is my wish to see the ruins as well," said Teyla and Melosh's face cleared almost immediately. "Of course, I would be happy to take you there."


	2. Chapter 2

The villagers kept up their honor guard routine, trailing behind the group as they made their way to the ruins. McKay had managed to engage Melosh in conversation about the site, giving Sheppard a chance to speak quietly with Teyla. "So, he and his friends just dialed the gate to a random address and walked through? Doesn't sound like the brightest penny in the change jar."

Teyla shook her head, understanding the gist of his comment if not the specifics. "Not all of us are lucky enough to have MALPs," she said, a little briskly. "And it was rare to find an address that connected to an unknown world. But if it had not been for men like Melosh, our people would have never traveled the stars at all."

"I'm sorry. You're right." He hid his amusement at the fact that Teyla was so quick to defend the man when it was so obvious, to everyone but Melosh, that she did not return his affections.

She seemed mollified by his apology. "Risks were necessary if we wished to discover new trading partners or perhaps even a safe harbor from the Wraith. It is not required or even encouraged, but sometimes a group of young people would feel the need to take such risks for the thrill of what they might accomplish. Are there not people who do the same on your planet?"

Sheppard grinned. "Yeah, we call them teenagers."

She eyed him, a small smile touching her lips. "The Atlantis expedition is made up of these teenagers?"

Sheppard opened his mouth and then snapped it shut again. She had him there. He gave her a mischievous grin instead. "Well, at least now you know why he never came back to fulfill his 'promise'."

Teyla glared at him and started to reply but was interrupted by Melosh's return as he broke off his conversation with McKay to approach them.

He eyed Sheppard coldly. "You have known Teyla long?"

Sheppard smiled, recognizing jealousy when he saw it. "Long enough."

Teyla interrupted them before things could escalate. "It must have been difficult, being trapped here all these years away from our people."

"I have missed our people. Some, more than others," Melosh smiled at her indulgently. "But being able to serve the gods has compensated for many things."

"So you're like a priest?" asked Sheppard.

"Something like that." He tipped his head at Teyla, changing the subject. "You and your friends are now trapped here as well."

"Oh, we can dial the gate," said Rodney. His face fell as Sheppard shot him a glare and he realized he might have let something slip that he shouldn't have.

"Truly? You can leave this place?" Melosh asked Teyla.

Realizing the cat was already out of the bag, Teyla answered honestly, "Yes. There is a device in our ship that allows us to dial the gate."

"How does it work?"

Teyla shot Sheppard a glance, not sure how much he wanted to reveal.

"You have to have something special in your blood to use it," said Sheppard, not being entirely truthful. While only those with the gene could fly the jumper, anyone could activate the DHD once it was powered.

Melosh looked him up and down. "And you are one of those with the special blood?"

"Yeah, that's me, I'm special," quipped Sheppard.

The former Athosian studied him through squinted eyes, reassessing the colonel's value. It gave Sheppard an uneasy feeling but he kept it to himself.

"The ruins of the gods," he announced, waving his arms toward the wide expanse of rubble that now stood in front of them.

As most of the team fanned out to explore, it didn't surprise anyone that he chose to stick close to Teyla.

Melosh, though, seemed surprised when Teyla began translating some of the ancient symbols carved on some of the ruins. "When did you learn the language of the gods?" he asked in pleased astonishment. She continued to study the symbols but glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. "I know," he said forestalling her response, "Many things have changed."

"Well?" Sheppard asked, trailing behind the scientist as he made a circuit of the area.

Rodney shook his head, pointing the device he held toward the ground at their feet. "I don't see anything that would indicate an underground chamber. The linguists and anthropologists will have a field day though." He indicated the symbols that covered one side of almost every stone.

Sheppard looked around at the expanse. "It would take them years to put it back together."

As Rodney continued to scan, they eventually circled around to rejoin Teyla who was looking at some stone steps at the edge of the ruins. A well-worn path could be seen leading from them, up the mountain. "Where does this path go?" she asked.

Melosh smiled happily. "To the temple of the gods. I _knew_ you would be drawn there, just as I was."

McKay raised a surprised eyebrow at the readings as he swung his hand unit towards the highest point of the path that could be seen and the device began to beep happily. "Are we allowed to, um…" He searched his mind for suitably primitive phrasing that would get him what he wanted. "…worship at the temple of the gods?" he asked, managing to keep most of the sarcasm out of his voice in the process.

"The gods are always happy to have new followers," Melosh said. He cast an eye skyward at the rapidly building cloud cover. "But I believe it will storm soon and it is not good to get caught on the mountainside during that time. Stay with me tonight as my guests and I will take you in the morning.

Sheppard glanced at Rodney who was obviously excited by whatever readings he was picking up. "We'll need to get in touch with our people," said Sheppard.

Melosh looked surprised that they had that ability as well, but quickly recovered. "Of course."

-o-

"There are some very interesting readings coming from the mountain," Rodney was reporting to Weir.

"_Interesting as in 'ZPM', or interesting as in 'Genii underground bunker'?"_ she asked.

"I'm not sure yet," the scientist admitted. "Just the fact that I'm able to pick them up from this distance despite the interference suggests -- well, I'm not sure -- but it definitely suggests something. The most interesting thing, though, is that our own instruments detect nothing. I can only pick up readings using the Ancient technology. From the expanse of the ruins, there was obviously a vast Ancient outpost on this planet. The chances that they left behind something of significance…"

"_Colonel?"_ inquired Weir. _"You did have a less than warm welcome."_

"The natives have basically ignored us since Melosh took control of the situation and I don't think he'd let any harm come to Teyla," said Sheppard, cocking an eye in her direction.

"_What do you think, Teyla? You know this Melosh better than anyone."_

"It has been many years since I have seen him and even then, we were little more than children." She thought about it for a moment. "I have always known him to be an honorable person, if somewhat reckless at times."

Sheppard snorted. "Typical teenage boy showing off for his girlfriend."

"_Very well,"_ said Weir. _"I want regular checks, though."_

"Ummmm, that might be a bit of a problem," said Rodney, wincing.

"_And why's that?"_

"The interference will only get worse the closer we get to the source, i.e. the mountain, so chances are we won't be able to get through on the radios."

"_Colonel,"_ began Weir, obviously rethinking the situation.

"Melosh says the hike will take half a day. If we start first thing in the morning, we can be there, check things out, spend the night and be back by tomorrow afternoon." He caught Rodney's mouth opening for what was sure to be an argument that such a short trip wouldn't give him nearly enough time, and gave him a headshake as a warning. "If we find anything really interesting, we can always go back the next day or bring in a team to investigate," he said, half to Weir and half to the scientist. He knew there was a good chance Weir wouldn't approve the mission at all if they were going to be out of touch for too long. The ten thousand year old Wraith that had claimed the lives of Gaul and Abrams had made her a little gun shy when it came to being out of touch with her teams for any length of time.

There was a long pause. _"I don't like this…"_

"But you're going to let us go anyway," interpreted Sheppard.

"_Yes,"_ agreed Weir, though she didn't sound happy about it. _"But if we don't hear from you by thirteen hundred tomorrow, I'm sending in the cavalry."_

"Understood. We'll call you before we head out tomorrow. Sheppard out." He looked around at his teammates. "Well, looks like we get to go hiking tomorrow."

Rodney looked less than thrilled as he suddenly realized that physical exertion on his part would be involved.

"I will tell Melosh," said Teyla, leaving.

Ronon just cocked his head, puzzled. "What's a cavalry?

-o-

Ronon was sitting on his cot, leaning back against the wall, and cleaning underneath his fingernails with a large knife. He was muttering to himself about people who would come to the rescue riding on the backs of animals. Animals were for eating, not for sitting on.

Rodney was also sitting on his cot, testing the firmness of the bedding by bouncing up and down on it slightly. "Do you have any idea what this is going to do to my back?" he complained.

"Suck it up, McKay," said Ronon, not bothering to look up from his current task.

Rodney narrowed his eyes. "_You_ might be used to these types of conditions, Crocodile Dundee…" he began.

"Who's Crocodile Dundee?" interrupted Ronon, suspiciously, twirling the knife suggestively in his hand.

"Oh, um," the scientist's eyes were drawn to the knife as the blade reflected the light, and suddenly he didn't look happy to have the runner's undivided attention.

Sheppard bailed him out. "You'd like him -- wrestled wild, man-eating beasts with his bare hands."

As the runner grunted and returned to his manicure, the door opened and Teyla entered.

"Nice of you to join us," quipped the Colonel. "Did you have a nice dinner?" Teyla had been invited to dine with Melosh privately while the rest of them had been sent to their assigned hut and fed something that he politely referred to as inedible. Even McKay and Ronon had opted for an MRE and powerbars rather than to eat the odiferous gruel-like substance the natives had provided them.

"Dinner was fine, thank you," said Teyla, moving aside a pack so that she could reach her jacket.

"Where are you going?"

"Melosh wished to show me a nearby spring."

"It's dark out." Sheppard made a grab for his own jacket. "We'll go with."

"I think it would be better if you did not."

He paused. "So you haven't you told him yet?"

"It is not that easy…"

"Sure it is," said Sheppard. "You just say, 'Hey Melosh, you're a great guy but I'm not interested'."

"Or how about 'I just need some space'," Rodney suggested.

"'You're not my type'," volunteered Sheppard.

"'It's not me, it's you'," returned Rodney.

Sheppard frowned at him. "Isn't that supposed to be the other way around?"

"Not the way I usually hear it."

Ronon was still paring his nails, deep in thought. "'You've got better hair than me'."

All three of his teammates turned to stare at him.

"What?" he asked them, his knife pausing momentarily before he returned to his task.

Teyla shook her head. "I do not wish to hurt him."

"Sometimes you have to be cruel to be kind," said Sheppard

Rodney looked at him in disbelief. "You're quoting Nick Lowe lyrics now?"

"I don't even want to know how you knew that," replied the colonel.

"Enough!" said Teyla, tired of their banter over what she considered a serious subject. "This is my problem. I will handle it as _I_ believe best." She stormed out the door.

"Teyla," began Sheppard, ready to apologize, but the door slammed in his face. He jerked back a bit, surprised by her show of pique and a little worried that they had gone too far in their teasing.

"Huh, that's new," said Rodney

"What's new?" Sheppard asked grumpily as he sat back down on his cot.

"_I'm_ usually the one getting the door slammed in my face by woman. It's just interesting to see if from a different perspective.

"Shut up, Rodney."


	3. Chapter 3

"We are here," said Melosh as they came out of the forest and into a small glade.

Teyla smiled in delight. The storm had passed leaving a bright full moon that shined down on the little spring, reflecting off the various mineral deposits washed down from the mountain and turning the water a rainbow of color. Small, white, sweet-smelling, night-blooming flowers covered the ground around the area, releasing more of their heady scent as their feet disturbed them. "It is beautiful," she said.

Melosh leaned down and picked one of the blossoms, tucking it into her hair. "No, _you_ are beautiful."

Teyla ducked her head and took a seat on the ground, letting a boulder act as a backrest. "Melosh…" she began, marshalling her thoughts.

"Tell me of our fathers and of Holling and Charan. I have missed them most." He said, taking a seat beside her on the ground.

"Our fathers were long ago taken by the Wraith," she told him gently knowing the pain such news would cause him. Her eyes glittering with unshed tears. He turned away from her, in sorrow, and she placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I am sorry, I know you and your father were very close."

After a few minutes, he had regained some control. "Holling and Charan?" he asked, his voice still rough with emotion.

"Holling is a father now. He has a young boy named Jinto." She cocked her head at him and smiled fondly. "He reminds me of you at that age, always curious and getting into trouble."

"And Charan?"

"Charan passed beyond just recently. I performed the ring ceremony for her." This time it was Teyla who was trying to hold her emotions in check.

"I am sorry. You cared for her very much," he said gently, "and she loved you like a daughter."

"She was the last of my family," said Teyla, her eyes welling again with unshed tears.

Melosh wrapped an arm around her shoulders in companionable comfort and Teyla leaned against him automatically, her distress momentarily clouding her thoughts.

"I will miss her tuttleroot soup," he said.

Charan's last gentle insult to her cooking skills came unbidden to Teyla's mind and she laughed.

He smiled at her. "What? What did I say?"

"It wasn't what you said, it is what Charan said." Teyla went on to tell Melosh of Charan's last days. Soon they were both reminiscing about the friends and family of their youth and days now long gone.

A brightness among the trees in the distance eventually caught her attention. "What is that?" she asked, curiously.

He smiled at her. "It is the sun."

Teyla looked alarmed. "Have we been talking all night?"

"Yes, and we have a long hike today, but I feel like I have more energy now than after a night of good sleep," he said, grinning at her.

-o-

"What's that," asked McKay, sniffing the air in distain and knuckling the sleep from his eyes.

Sheppard stirred the bowl without enthusiasm. "Apparently it's some sort of porridge."

"It smells hideous."

Ronon stuffed a spoonful into his mouth and swallowed after a minimal amount of chewing. "I've had worse."

Rodney merely wrinkled his nose. Glancing around, he noticed they were one team member short. "Where's Teyla?"

"She never came back."

"Really?" asked McKay, frowning before he made the connection and then smiled slyly.

The grin promptly disappeared as Ronon handed him a bowl of the noxious porridge. Rodney looked down into the contents of the crude wooden bowl. "I'm not eating this swill."

"It's going to be a long hike," warned Sheppard, forcing some of the food down.

"Isn't there anything left from last night?"

"You ate everything already, including the powerbars, so unless you want to turn cannibal…"

"I vote we eat McKay first," said Ronon instantly, a feral grin on his face.

"Never mind, I'll try it," Rodney said, managing to choke down about half the bowl before they were interrupted by their tardy teammate.

"We missed you last night," said Sheppard as she entered the hut.

"I am sorry. Melosh and I were talking and I lost track of the time."

"You were talking -- all night?" Sheppard asked casually.

"Yes," she replied, a little miffed at his obvious insinuation. "We were reminiscing about times past. Not that it is any of your concern."

Sheppard raised his hands slightly in surrender. "You're right. I'm sorry. It's none of my business."

Teyla seemed to accept his apology at face value. "Melosh is ready to leave if you are," she said, grabbing her pack.

"I just need to make a quick call to check in with Elizabeth and we can go."

-o-

As the day, and Rodney's complaining, wore on, the sky grew darker and more ominous. Teyla and Melosh's conversation was a cheerful counterpoint to the overcast sky. The Athosian's lilting laughter filtered back as she and Melosh joked and talked. Sheppard began to wonder if maybe Teyla had changed her mind regarding her 'promise'.

During a break in their chatter, Melosh caught Teyla's worried glance at the dark clouds. "It is the rainy season. Do not be concerned. The storm will not break until this evening. We will be safe within the home of the gods before then." She smiled at him, a warm earthy smile that he eagerly returned.

The trail became narrower and steeper the further they progressed. Eventually they had to walk single file. Melosh led the procession, followed by Teyla and the rest of the team -- the natives trailing behind in a long line. Occasionally Sheppard caught a glimpse of the end of their little convoy during one of the many tight switchbacks. He could understand why Melosh had suggested they not try climbing the mountain in the rain; the footing was treacherous enough as it was. He kept a careful eye on Rodney in front of him, but the scientist was a sure-footed climber despite his complaints.

Another hour's hiking brought them within sight of a large entrance carved into the mountainside above them. Torches burned in sconces on either side even though it was still full daylight.

"Does that look like Ancient architecture to you?" asked Sheppard, frowning.

Rodney squinted at it. "Not exactly. It does seem vaguely familiar though."

"It's not Wraith," said Ronon, shouldering past them as the path widened and entering the cave behind Teyla and Melosh without so much as a backward glance toward the hesitating men.

Rodney still looked nervous. "After you," he said, waving Sheppard ahead of him. The colonel rolled his eyes but didn't object. They paused just within the entrance, waiting for their eyes to adjust to the dim lighting.

A glow caught Rodney's attention as they entered and he pointed his handheld device at a shimmering orb near the center of the room. "There's our power source," he said quietly to Sheppard. "It's no ZPM, but it beats our naqueda generators hands down. It's also broadcasting a frequency similar to the cloak our jumpers use."

"That explains why the Wraith never come here. They don't know the planet's inhabited," Sheppard replied quietly.

"Come forward and greet the gods," invited Melosh. "They are anxious to see you."

"_See_ us?" echoed Rodney, exchanging a surprised glance with Sheppard. "As in live, in person?"

Pointy spears in their backs encouraged them to move forward and they approached a dais in a darkened corner of the room where two chairs sat. One filled by a tank with something swimming in it, the other was occupied an almost decrepit old man.

"Yes," a resonate voice said as the old man stood, his eyes lit from within. "Come forward and worship at the feet of your gods."

"Crap, their gods aren't the Ancients…" said Sheppard.

"They're Goa'uld," finished Rodney, reaching toward the sudden pain in his neck even as he collapsed. A few seconds later, Sheppard and Ronon joined him on the floor, feathered darts sticking from their necks as well.

-o-

"Mumph," said Rodney, groaning as he squinted against the light.

"About damn time you woke up," said Sheppard, leaning heavily against the wall. "Was I dreaming or did that guy's eyes light up -- and I don't mean like Christmas morning."

Rodney immediately felt the back of his neck for a Goa'uld entry wound, sighing in relief when he felt nothing but smooth skin beneath his fingers, and only then realizing that his wrists were tied together. "No you're right. It was definitely a Goa'uld."

"We're in the Pegasus galaxy for God's sake, where _aren't_ those guys?" asked Sheppard, taking a few drunken steps while continuing to lean heavily against the wall for support.

Ronon elbowed himself off the floor, something made more difficult since his wrists were also bound, and looked around the room. "Teyla's missing."

"So are our vests and weapons," said Rodney. At the glare the runner shot him, he added, "What? I can't be worried about her _and_ us at the same time?"

"So Melosh's god is the same thing that Caldwell was? I thought his gods were the Ancients." Ronon pulled two spent darts from his neck. "Is he a Goa'uld who took control of an Ancient?" he asked as he checked to see if their captors had missed any of his knives and frowning when he found himself completely disarmed.

"He's a Goa'uld _pretending_ to be an Ancient," said Rodney. "It makes sense actually."

Sheppard finally managed to stand without supporting himself against the wall. "I'm glad _you_ think so."

"It's not strange that they'd pretend to be Ancients in the Pegasus Galaxy," Rodney explained to Ronon. "In our galaxy the Goa'uld have a long history of impersonating various gods to better control their followers."

"A better description would be 'slaves'," said Sheppard absently, studying their room for a means of an escape.

"And people there fall for that?" The runner's muscles bunched in an unsuccessful attempt to break the straps binding his wrists.

"Humph, yes, surprisingly naive, isn't it?" responded the scientist.

"Rodney, if you're not too busy?" said Sheppard.

"What?" The scientist looked up the colonel in confusion until Sheppard waved his bound hands toward the door. "Oh, right." He rose unsteadily to his feet and began prying at the control panel with his fingernails.

-o-

"Can't you hurry it up?" asked Sheppard.

"I'm doing the best I can. _You_ try rerouting a door control built by an alien race with your hands tied together," the scientist snapped.

"Hist," warned Ronon from where he had his ear pressed to the door. McKay quickly shoved the various cables back into the wall and snapped the cover into place, backing away just as the door opened to reveal the Goa'uld and four of the villagers, this time armed with deadly staff weapons instead of blowguns or spears.

"Melosh tells me you're from the Ancient stronghold of Atlantis," said the Goa'uld.

"Formerly," said Rodney, raising a finger slightly.

"Where is Teyla?" Sheppard demanded.

"_I_ will ask the questions." He pointed at Rodney. "That one first," he said, before turning in a swirl of robes that belayed his decrepit appearance and exiting the room.

The scientist had a chance to shoot them a single panicked glance before he was yanked out of the room. The door snapped shut in Sheppard's face. "Rodney!"

An hour later, their teammate was returned and thrown through the door, barely conscious.

Sheppard knelt beside him. "Rodney, what happened? Are you okay?" he asked as the scientist clutched at his head, obviously in pain.

"You will soon find out, first hand, Colonel Sheppard," said the Goa'uld as the guards latched onto Sheppard and dragged him out of the room.

Ronon stood by, staff weapons aimed at his chest, helpless to prevent it.

Sheppard was marched down the hall to room hung with tattered draperies which might have looked regal at some point, but now just emphasized the state of decay the hung over the entire temple. The tank had been moved into the room as well. The colonel looked at the creature undulating in the murky water with undisguised disgust. "Who, or what, is that?"

One of the guards hit him hard across the back of the shoulders with the butt end of his staff, bringing Sheppard down to his knees with a gasp.

"You will show respect," said the Goa'uld. "That is my queen. Her host was not as strong as my own."

"So, are you gonna tell me your name or should I just call you 'snakehead'?" This time the staff caught him across the back of the head and he briefly saw sparks.

"You shall call me God," boomed the deep resonate voice as the Goa'uld's eyes glowed.

"Yeah, about that -- we pretty much ousted you guys from our galaxy, so that whole 'god' routine doesn't really work on us anymore," Sheppard quipped.

The Goa'uld narrowed his eyes. "In your Galaxy, I was known as Denwen," he said as if expecting the name to strike terror in Sheppard's heart.

"And that?" asked Sheppard, pointing to the tank.

The Goa'uld put his hand in the tank, caressing the creature. "Wadjet. My beloved."

Sheppard looked slightly ill as the slimy snake-like creature wrapped itself around her mate's arm. "You two make a cute couple," he said, his face wrinkled in disgust.

Denwen gave the creature a last fond pat and it slid back beneath the surface. "She will soon have another host -- as will I. This body, too, is nearing the end of its usefulness."

Sheppard's eyes narrowed as he suddenly made the connection. "You mean Teyla and Melosh." He shook his head and gritted his teeth. "You'll put that _thing_ in Teyla over my dead body."

Smiling, Denwen raised his palm in front of Sheppard's face and the hand device he was wearing began to glow. "As you wish."


	4. Chapter 4

"Sheppard?"

Ronon's voice cut through the fog of his distress and John found himself opening his eyes, immediately squinting against a headache that was blinding to the point of nausea.

Rodney looked over his shoulder from where he was working on the door controls. "If you're going to throw up, you might want to crawl over there," he said unsympathetically, pointing to the far corner of the room as best he could with bound hands.

Sheppard started to shake his head and was immediately sorry. It took a full minute before he felt he could safely open his mouth. "How long?"

"You were gone for over an hour. You've been comatose for about fifteen minutes," Rodney replied.

Sheppard squinted at the runner. "Why didn't they take you?"

The runner shrugged. "I'm not from Atlantis."

"Okaaay," said Sheppard, struggling to his knees. "How did they know _that_?"

"I don't know about you, but I don't remember much after I got hit with that beam," said Rodney, still working on the controls. "The reports from SG-1 suggest that the victim of the hand devices have no control, and sometimes no knowledge, of what information they give."

"Great. You're telling me we may have just spilled our guts to the second worst threat to Earth?"

"Third, actually. You're forgetting the Ori. They've taken over as the main bad guy while the Goa'uld try to salvage what they can of their empire."

"Thanks, that makes me feel _so_ much better," the colonel said dryly.

Ronon helped the colonel to his feet and they walked over to where Rodney was working. It was then Sheppard noticed how badly the scientist's hands were shaking. "Are you okay?" he asked. Apparently it was the outlet the scientist had been waiting for.

"No, okay? No, I'm not! I've just been tortured by a Goa'uld in the fucking Pegasus Galaxy!" Rodney snapped. "The Wraith and the Genii weren't bad enough?" he yelled at the ceiling wincing at the increased pounding of his head.

"We need to get out of here," said Sheppard, calmly.

"What do you think I'm trying to do here, get free HBO?"

"The Goa'uld is planning to use Teyla and Melosh as new hosts for his mate and himself."

"What?" Rodney paused to stare at the colonel before he shook his head and concentrated harder on the wiring in front of him.

"How did a Goa'uld get out here, in this galaxy?" asked Ronon.

Rodney looked at two wires, mystified, before choosing the one on the left and connecting it to a terminal. "They were experimenting, trying to improve the wormhole technology to give themselves an edge over the other Goa'uld and accidentally sent themselves here. The natives had some sort of uprising shortly after they arrived and the DHD was destroyed in process. In true Goa'uld fashion, he still managed to -- subjugate -- the population."

"You mean he killed them," said Ronon.

"As many as he thought he could and still leave himself a slave labor population," said Rodney, digging his fingers into the control panel to snag another wire. "Apparently the natives of this planet age more rapidly than the people in our galaxy, making them less than ideal hosts. When Melosh showed up, the Goa'uld convinced the poor smuck that he was an Ancient and _wha-la_, instant jaffa-wannabe to help keep the locals in line."

"Why interrogate you and Sheppard? Why does he care so much about Atlantis?"

"He wants to use the Ancient technology to start his own little empire in the Pegasus Galaxy just like the Goa'uld did in the Milky Way," answered McKay, off-handedly.

Sheppard frowned at him. "How did you find all this out?"

"Typical megalomaniac. He can't help but run off at the mouth about how great he is if you give him half a chance."

Sheppard gave Ronon a wry smile and the runner rolled his eyes.

Rodney caught their exchange. "What? Oh. **_I_ **really am that good, so that's different."

"Prove it," said Sheppard, nodding at the door.

Rodney gave him a cat-that-ate-the-canary smile, despite his aching head, and crossed the last two wires he was holding. The door slid open.

"Okay," said Sheppard, nodding his head and pursing his lips. "I'll give you that one."

They slipped down the corridor, watching for guards, and made their way toward what Sheppard hoped would be the entrance hall. He had no idea where to start looking for Teyla but that was the last place he had seen her, so it seemed a logical place to start.

He peeked through a doorway, only to find their interrogation room, now empty. "Wrong way," he said, heading for the opposite side of the torch-lit corridor.

"You _do_ have a plan?" asked Rodney, keeping his voice low.

"Yeah, it's called 'operation find-Teyla-and-get-the-hell-outta-here'," hissed Sheppard.

"Oh, good, and here I thought we were just wandering around aimlessly," snapped the scientist.

-o-

"I want to see my friends," said Teyla, fuming.

Melosh shook his head. "I told you, they're fine."

"Why are you doing this? They have done nothing to you!"

"The gods commanded it."

"You have been blinded by your faith, Melosh. They are not the Ancients and they are _certainly_ not gods."

"Blasphemy!"

She squinted at him as an uneasy thought came into her head. "Tell me truly, Melosh, what happened to Tenon and Hawliot?"

He looked nervous and guilty. "I told you already, the gods struck them down."

"You mean you stood by and let them be killed," she said with sudden understanding, her voice growing cold.

"_They_ are gods. _They_ decide who lives and who dies," he yelled frantically.

"You let your friends die for _nothing_," she shouted back, tears welling in her eyes as she thought about the betrayal of the two brave young men she had been so fond of.

"Teyla, it wasn't like that. They _had_ a choice. They chose to defy the gods. What could I do?" pleaded Melosh.

She shook her head slowly. "You are not the man I thought I knew. I pity you, Melosh."

His face changed from guilt to anger at her comment. "You promised to bond with me."

"You promised me the moon and the stars of the sky," she countered. "We were children, Melosh, with childish fantasies -- but _I_ am a child no longer."

He grabbed her arms and shook her. "Look at me! Look me in the eyes and tell me you have no feelings for me. That you felt nothing last night."

"It is true I felt affection for you…"

"There is another," he interrupted. "Someone with whom you feel more than mere affection," he spat out jealously.

"It does not matter if there were," Teyla said sadly, looking at the ruined man before her. "My feelings toward you would not change."

"They _will_ change – in time," he insisted, his voice taking on a hard edge. He walked across the room and opened the door to reveal Denwen holding a small tank in his arms. "The centuries ahead will soften your resolve." He reached in and removed the Wadjet from her tank and began walking toward Teyla.

-o-

Ronon paused, holding up a hand and cocking his head slightly. Sheppard took the hint and strained his ears, catching only a few faint words, but he recognized one of the voices as Teyla's. They followed the sounds and soon they found themselves outside the same chamber where they had first been darted. Cautiously peeking through a crack in the door, Sheppard confirmed that there were only three people in the room. Teyla was backing away from Melosh with a look of revulsion on her face. It took the colonel a second to realize what the man held in his hands.

With a quick glance at Ronon to confirm his intentions, the men burst through the door. As Denwen raised his hand device toward Sheppard, Ronon wasted no time. Grabbing the old man and snapping his neck in a single, fluid movement, he let the body drop to the floor without so much as a backward glance. The tank Denwen had been holding also crashed to the floor in an explosion of broken glass and liquid.

"You killed our god!" shrieked Melosh. He was still holding Wadjet, which kept them from approaching him too closely.

"Listen to yourself, Melosh," pleaded Teyla, pressing herself against the wall as hard as she could while looking nervously at the wriggling creature he held just inches from her body. "You cannot kill a god!"

"Rodney," said Sheppard, loud enough for everyone to hear. "If he doesn't put that thing down by the time I count to three, I want you to destroy the power converter."

The scientist glanced toward the glowing orb. "Are you sure?" he whispered just loud enough for Sheppard to hear, obviously heartbroken by the idea of destroying such a potentially useful object. "If I could get it back to Atlantis…"

"Rodney," growled the colonel.

"Right." He walked over to the orb, cautiously picking it up and examining it.

The snake-like creature in Melosh's hand squealed and turned in the direction of the scientist. Rodney swallowed hard despite the distance between them. Suddenly, Denwen rose to his feet, wrenching his chin to the left with the heel of his hand. Sheppard winced at the sounds of cracking bones that could be heard.

"See," Melosh told Teyla excitedly after he recovered from his astonishment at seeing his god rise from the dead. "They _are _gods!" As he thrust Wadjet toward her, Rodney dashed the globe to the hard stone floor of the cave.

Sheppard and his team dived for cover as bolts of energy exploded in waves from the broken device. Melosh was not as lucky and was blown back several feet near the puddle of murky water and broken glass that was all that remained of Wadjet's tank. The Goa'uld dropped from his limp hands and into the liquid beside him. The water seemed to attract the energy bolts and Wadjet screamed even as she was turned to a blackened husk.

Denwen wailed and reached for his mate, turning himself into a conductor in the process.

"Go!" Rodney yelled at them as the energy emissions became increasingly unstable.

The team burst out of the cave's entrance and into a downpour. Sheppard and Ronon each grabbed one of the torches to either side of the entrance, jerking them out of their iron sconces just as an explosion rocked the ground under their feet and a blast of energy shot from the cave's entrance, barely missing the two men.

"Let's get outta here," said the Colonel, taking the lead down the slippery mountain path.

-o-

In the remnants of the throne room, Melosh dragged himself to Denwen's burned body, tears streaming down his face as he clutched his god to his chest. At that moment, the Goa'uld jumped from his dead host to Melosh, burying itself in his neck. The former Athosian writhed in pain for a moment but then grew calm as his eyes glowed.

-o-

It was pitch black, except for an occasional lightning strike, and footing was slick as Sheppard's team made their way down the path.

At one point, Rodney began to slide dangerously toward the edge, but Ronon's quick grab at the back of his shirt stopped the scientist. Rodney murmured a thank you even as he rubbed his throat where collar of the shirt had caught him. They were several hours into their escape and drenched to the bone when Sheppard called for a brief rest break. Looking back the way they had come, they could see more torches bouncing high above.

Sheppard winced as a boom of thunder echoed through his aching head. "How close, do you think?" he asked Ronon, trying to gauge the speed and distance of their pursuers.

Before the runner could answer, there was a rumbling sound and both Dex and Teyla gave a yell as their footing vanished and part of the path gave way, sliding down the side of the mountain and taking two of their team members with it.


	5. Chapter 5

Rodney and Sheppard had to do some fast shuffling as the ground under their own feet turned to deadly mire. Once they regained fairly firm footing, Sheppard cupped his hands and yelled in the direction his teammates had disappeared. "Teyla? Ronon?"

A faint yell answered him after a long moment of silence. "Here."

"Are you okay?" he shouted over the pouring rain.

There was a pause and flicker of torchlight far below them. "Yes, but the hillside is too slippery, we cannot climb back up," called Teyla.

Sheppard lowered his own torch over the edge of the embankment, trying to see if there was anyway to get down to them. All he saw was a river of mud leading down the side of the mountain.

"You're not thinking of trying to climb down there?" squeaked Rodney, peeking over the edge. "There's nothing to grab onto between here and oblivion."

Sheppard pursed his lips unhappily but he knew Rodney was right.

"Can you climb _down _from where you are?" he shouted.

"Yes," answered Teyla. "I believe so."

"We'll rendezvous at the jumper, then. Be careful!"

Ronon shouted up agreement and both halves of the team continued their trek down the mountainside.

-o-

"What do you think?" asked Rodney, as he and Sheppard sat hidden in the cover of the forest, looking out at the jumper. The storm had finally stopped and the morning had dawned bright and clear.

Sheppard shook his head. "It feels wrong."

"So what do we do?" Rodney pulled his still damp shirt away from his skin with a disgusted grimace.

There was a movement in the trees behind them and they spun around, breathing a sigh of relief as Ronon and a limping Teyla appeared, covered in drying mud. Crouching down beside Sheppard, the runner looked out through the brush at the jumper. The two men exchanged suspicious glances but Ronon said, "Are we just going to sit out here and wait for them to find us?"

Sheppard grimaced. "Teyla, you and Rodney stay here until we see what's what," he said as he moved cautiously out of the underbrush with Ronon on his heels. The colonel hated feeling so exposed as they crossed the meadow where the jumper was parked but there was no help for it. The runner must have felt the same way because both men began to pick up the pace as they neared the ship, hoping to beat any ambush.

Ronon had pulled a little ahead so it was he who went down in a bright flash of blue as the shield activated. He writhed on the ground cursing as he recovered from the shock the shield had given him.

Sheppard managed to slide to a halt before making contact. He looked down sympathetically at the runner. "Hurts like a son-of-a-bitch, don't it?"

Ronon just glared at him and managed to make it to his knees before taking Sheppard's offered hand and regaining his feet. Picking up a stone, the colonel threw it at the jumper, watching as it bounced off the shield. He turned to wave at Rodney. The scientist glanced to his left and right as if trying to decide to whom Sheppard was signaling.

Sheppard rolled his eyes and amended his wave to a come-hither motion. After a moment, the scientist stumbled out of the brush as if propelled. Turning back, a slender dark hand waved him toward the jumper and his shoulders slumped in defeat as he began to jog toward Sheppard and Ronon, hunched low.

Breathing hard, he crouched slightly beside them as if trying to make himself a smaller target. "What do we do now?"

"Get rid of the shield," said Sheppard, matter-of-factly.

Rodney's face twisted sarcastically. "Oh, and what should I use to do that? Stone knives and bearskins?"

Sheppard squinted in disbelief at the scientist. "Tell me you did not just quote Star Trek!"

Rodney looked sheepish but his tone was just as sharp as usual. "I'm not a magician, colonel. I can't just snap my fingers and make it go away," he said, putting middle finger to thumb and flicking them in emphasis.

"Where did the shield come from?" asked Ronon as Sheppard acknowledge defeat.

"The Goa'uld are very good at poaching technology, especially Ancient technology. Obviously he's taught Melosh a thing or two.

"We sent Elizabeth a message right before we left, so that would mean…" began Sheppard.

"They beat us back here," finished Ronon. As if on cue, a blackened crater suddenly appeared at their feet. Ronon instinctively rolled clear and regained his feet in an instant, running for the safety of the tree line.

Rodney stood and stared at the smoking hole in shocked surprise until Sheppard gave him an emphatic shove him in the direction of the forest.

Ronon had far outstripped them and was already crossing into the relative safety of the forest as another blast tore the ground apart at Rodney's feet, causing him to stumble and almost go down. Sheppard grabbed the scientist roughly by the arm, keeping him on his feet and steering him away from the line of fire. In the process, they had to angle away from where Ronon and Teyla were. For the second time, the team was separated as Sheppard urged Rodney onward though the tall, thick meadow grass towards some large rocks in the distance, hoping they would provide some protection from the energy blasts.

-o-

"We're so fucked!" exclaimed Rodney from where he had his body squeezed tightly in a small nitch formed by two large boulders.

Sheppard chanced a look towards the scientist from his own position of cover. "Really? You think so, Rodney?" he shouted sarcastically over the pulse of energy weapons bursting around them and instinctively jerked his head back further behind the bolder as a blast missed his nose by just a few centimeters. Despite his comments, he shook his head worriedly. They really were in trouble if Rodney was using four-letter words. Not that the scientist was a prude, by any means, but McKay diligently followed the 'why used a single four-letter word when a string of ten letter words could be used instead' rule of thought.

Another whiz of electricity bolted past them. "They're getting closer," yelled Rodney. "We're outgunned and out numbered, what are we going to do?"

Sheppard could hear the scientist's voice revving toward full panic mode. "We just need to stall for time. Weir will send a search party out when she doesn't hear from us as schedule. If we're really lucky, maybe her spidey senses will kick in and she'll send someone even earlier." He looked over his shoulder at the safety of the forest across the boulder-strewn meadow, debating their options. "Head for the far side of the meadow, keep low, and don't forget to zigzag!"

-o-

Teyla snagged her toe and went down, hard. She loosed the worst Athosian curse that she could think of and kicked angrily at the offending root.

Ronon crouched beside her, grinning.

She turned her anger on him. "What is so amusing?" she snapped as she sat up and reached over to free her foot from its entanglement.

"I've never heard you curse before," he smirked, unperturbed by her ire.

Rubbing her sore ankle, she glanced up at him, slightly embarrassed by her outburst. "How do you know it was a curse?"

Ronon shrugged. "I would have cursed, had it been me." He reached out and pulled away some of the leaves that were now sticking to the mud on her cheek.

She brought her hand to her face automatically, feeling the crunching leaves beneath her own fingers and realizing how she must look. She gave the runner a wry smile. "I am sorry I snapped at you."

"Don't worry about it," he replied. Eyeing her state of disrepair he asked, "Can you walk or should I carry you?"

She rolled her eyes and held out her hands, inviting him to help her stand. After taking a few experimental steps, she found she could walk unaided, though her ankle was still sore. "I am ready to continue," she confirmed, motioning him to take the lead.

As he pushed his way through the underbrush, he said, "This running around is a waste of time, we should be setting traps and preparing a defense."

Teyla ducked a tree limb. "We need only avoid them a little while longer. Dr. Weir will send someone."

"What if she doesn't?"

"She will."

"But what if she doesn't?"

"She will," Teyla told him with absolute certainty.

"How can you be so sure?"

She tipped her head at him. "I have faith in Dr. Weir."

A snapping stick caused Ronon to spin and he found himself on the wrong end of a weapon.

-o-

"Down!"

Sheppard's body bore him to the ground behind a boulder as the blast of the staff weapon disintegrated a small, nearby sapling. "Oomph!" Rodney struggled to get his breath back but it was difficult with Sheppard still on top of him. "Thanks for saving my life and all, but you can get up now," he gasped painfully at the rocks and sticks poking him in the stomach as the Colonel's weight pressed down on him.

"Yeah, gimme a minute," was the breathless reply.

Rodney instantly sensed something was wrong and wiggled out from underneath the colonel, careful to keep a low profile. The back of Sheppard's shirt was blackened and crisped where the energy beam had cut through it diagonally from shoulder to waist. "Shit! Shit shit shit," said the scientist.

"Don't panic, Rodney," said the Colonel, struggling to control his breathing. "It just creased me."

"Creased you? **_Creased _**you? Your goddamn tee shirt is still smoking!" exclaimed McKay, his voice growing frantic as the smell of burned flesh wafted in his direction. He wanted to get a better look at the injury but was afraid of causing more damage. They didn't even have any supplies to treat it.

"I just need a minute…" began Sheppard, his words slurring.

"Colonel? Sheppard!" called McKay, but it was no use. The man was out cold.

As he contemplated their situation, he tried to think of what Sheppard would do in his place. Looking around, he spotted an area where the grass grew thicker and dragged the colonel into the cover it provided. Then, poking his head up from the boulder, he yelled "this way" to no one before taking off in a zigzag pattern towards the woods, narrowly avoiding another white hot energy blast as he lead their pursuers away from his injured teammate.

-o-

Sheppard regained consciousness and spit out a mouth full of weeds, then raised his head slightly to discover all was quiet around him. He set his palms underneath his chest and pushed, gritting his teeth against the agony of his back as he managed to make it to his hands and knees. "Rodney?" he gasped. When there was no answer, he managed to lurch to his feet, grabbing at a boulder for support. "Rodney?" Stumbling, he searched the area around where they had been pinned down, with the thought that maybe the scientist had been knocked out as well. The tall thick, tall grass was making it difficult though.

"Colonel!"

Sheppard automatically ducked for cover, then relaxed when he saw Lorne and his team approaching from the edge of the forest. He rose, shakily, to meet them.

Lorne winced when he saw the burns through the slash in Sheppard's shirt. "Sergeant, escort the colonel back to the jumper."

"McKay and I got separated," began Sheppard. "Teyla and Ronon…"

"Don't worry, Sir. We've already found those two and in a lot better shape than you're in. As for Dr. McKay, we'll track him down quickly enough with this," said Lorne, holding up his lifesigns detector. "He can't have gotten too far." Nodding to the rest of his men, the soldiers fanned out, P-90's at the ready. When Sheppard made a move to join them, Lorne gripped his arm. "Sir, you need medical attention, let the sergeant take you to Dr. Beckett."

"I'm not leaving this planet without my team," said Sheppard but he knew if it weren't for Lorne's supporting hand on his bicep, he'd probably fall flat on his face.

Lorne grinned. "You don't have to. He came with us."

Sheppard blinked in surprise. "How did you manage to talk him into that?"

"If I told you…"

"I'd have to kill you," finished both men simultaneously, but Sheppard's grim smile was backed by worry.

"We'll find him for you, Sir." Lorne nodded for the sergeant to take the injured man's free arm and lead him back to the jumper.

-o-

A blast stopped Rodney in his tracks as Melosh/Denwen moved from behind an outcropping, brandishing a staff weapon.

"Hey, Melosh," the scientist greeted lamely. "About the whole 'killing your gods' thing…"

"Silence!" screamed the Goa'uld, his eyes glowing. He raised the weapon and pointed it at Rodney's chest. The scientist squeezed his eyes shut tightly, preparing himself for the inevitable only to crack them open them a moment later when nothing happened.

The Goa'uld was shaking the staff and cursing at it.

"Yeah, they have to be charged regularly -- probably by that power orb I destroyed," said the scientist helpfully, smirking. The smile was wiped off his face though as he was knocked to the ground, pain searing through his leg even as the gunshot echoed through the trees.

Melosh/Denwen stood smiling, gripping one of the team's missing 9mm in his hand.


	6. Chapter 6

"Sheppard's been injured," Ronon reported to Weir. The stark news was blunted by the fact that the colonel could be heard arguing with Beckett in the background. "We haven't been able to locate McKay yet."

"_Very well, keep me informed. Weir out."_

Sheppard was sitting on one of the bench seats in the back of the jumper, legs drawn up to his chest, as he rested his forehead against the crossed arms on his knees. Teyla and the sergeant could be seen through the rear hatch, standing guard nearby. P-90's in hand, they waited as Lorne and the rest of his men searched for any sign of their missing scientist. His report now complete, Ronon handed Sheppard a pistol and a radio, completely oblivious the doctor's angry glare. Reaching into the overhead webbing, he also pulled down two P-90's, placing one on the seat next to Sheppard and shouldering the other as he left the jumper to stand guard duty with Teyla and the sergeant.

Carson, in the meantime, had unpacked some of his own gear and began carefully cutting through the dark fabric of Sheppard's shirt. Gently peeling it away, he suppressed a hiss of dismay when he saw the burn scoring Sheppard's back. "I need to get you back to Atlantis to treat this."

"I'm not leaving without McKay."

Beckett could feel the colonel trembling under his hands, on the brink of exhaustion and shock. "You have a squadron of men out there searching. They'll find him," he argued, knowing that he might as well be talking to a brick wall. He supposed that he should just be grateful the man wasn't dragging himself though the underbrush looking for Rodney as well.

"Just bandage it up temporarily, okay?"

It had the form of a question but Beckett knew better than to think Sheppard was really asking. Carefully probing the wound, he realized it wasn't as deep as it looked; and though long, it was shallow – a testament to the man's diving skills. The crisped edges of the wound showed that the blast had had a cauterizing effect. Surgery to remove the dead flesh and sew together healthy skin would probably be necessary, but the streak was narrow enough that he knew it wouldn't be a terribly difficult procedure. Weighing the pros and cons, he decided to let the colonel have his way – for the moment. "Very well," he said, unhappily.

He began looking through his medical pack for supplies, pulling out what he needed. "What caused this?"

"A staff weapon."

Beckett harrumphed. After everything he'd seen, little surprised him anymore -- at least not when it came to the type of damage weapons could inflict on the human body. Spreading a thick layer of antibiotic burn ointment over the injury, he taped several pieces of gauze on the colonel's back, completely covering the wound. Sheppard hadn't made a single sound during the process, but Beckett could feel the colonel's tension under his fingertips as he worked. High threshold or not, such a burn would be incredibly painful. He was sure the man wouldn't ask for any painkillers though, worried that the doctor would use the request as an excuse to force him to return to Atlantis before their missing teammate was found.

Mentally cursing daft colonels and direction-challenged scientists, he pulled out an ampoule from his pack and filled a syringe. Sheppard shot him another sidelong glance but didn't object to the shot. Within a few seconds, Beckett could see him start to relax as the morphine kicked in.

As both the pain in his back and the constant nagging headache eased, the colonel tipped his head slightly from where it was resting on his arms and looked at the doctor out of the corner of his eye. "Marry me, Doc," he joked, taking a few deep pain-free breaths.

"I've turned down better offers than the likes of you," the physician quipped as he removed his jacket and laid it over Sheppard's shoulders, careful not to disturb the bandages.

Sheppard gingerly maneuvered his arms into the sleeves and pulled the jacket, still warm from Beckett's body heat, around his bare torso. It overlapped in the front, but it felt heavenly. "Thanks…again."

"You're welcome."

After confirming for himself that Ronon had sustained nothing more than some scrapes and bruises, and wrapping Teyla's ankle against further injury, he went back into the jumper and took a seat beside Sheppard, preparing himself to wait.

Five heads jerked up in surprise as a gunshot was heard in the distance.

-o-

Melosh/Denwen stood and watched in amusement as McKay writhed in pain, pressing his hand against his thigh in attempt to stop the massive bleeding.

After a moment or two, he walked over and peered down at the scientist. Denwen's eyes glowed and he smiled gleefully. "Melosh says this is a fatal injury and that you will soon die from blood loss."

Rodney took off his belt with blood-covered, shaking hands and pulled it tight around his leg just above the wound. The widely woven webbing allowed him to buckle it at whatever point he wished so at least there was no need to cut a hole in it. He looked down and realized blood was still flowing through the wound at an alarming rate. He tightened the tourniquet further, using all his rapidly diminishing strength and finally slowed the flow from the wound as he managed to buckle it in place. He lay back then, struggling not to pass out. He was in trouble and he knew it. The tourniquet was far too tight and would be stopping the flow of blood to his entire leg, but it was either that or bleed to death within minutes. And after all, he didn't need two good legs to be a physicist, he told himself. Look at Stephen Hawkings. There was plenty to do on Atlantis to keep him busy; he didn't necessarily _need _to be able to go on missions. Despite his reasoned internal monologue, the thought terrified him almost as much as the creature standing over him.

"Good, good," agreed Denwen who had been watching his efforts. "You don't deserve a quick death -- better you suffer like my beloved Wadjet." He held out his glowing palm toward the stricken man, smiling gleefully as the murderer of his beloved cried out in agonizing pain.

A shot rang out and Melosh/Denwen cursed as a bullet ripped through his shoulder. Looking in the direction from where the shot had originated, he saw a group of soldiers running toward his position. As their leader raised a gun, Melosh/Denwen made a dive towards the woods, intending to regroup with his own men who were still searching the forest nearby for Sheppard and the rest.

Tucking the detector into his vest, Lorne crouched by the prone figure; checking for a pulse and was rewarded by a fast, albeit weak beat beneath his fingertips. Giving McKay a cursory glance, his eyes fell on the tourniquet. He loosened the belt slightly, knowing the inherent dangers of such a device, and cursed under his breath when he saw the fresh blood well up. Quickly tightening it back down, he reached for his ear to radio Beckett but stopped when he caught sight of one of the soldiers signaling him.

Pulling out the detector, he saw more and more dots appearing at the edges of its screen. He looked back at McKay and was surprised as pain-filled blue eyes met his own. The scientist opened his mouth in what Lorne was sure would be a flood of questions so he quickly but lightly clamped his hand over it, bringing his lips near the scientist's ear. "Shhhhhh." McKay gave him the slightest nod of understanding and the major removed his hand and squeezed the injured man's shoulder in approval.

"Sheppard?" mouthed McKay.

Holding up three fingers to indicate the entire team, Lorne then gave an "okay" hand signal even a scientist could interpret. Rodney closed his eyes in relief.

Checking the detector again, Lorne sent several more complicated hand signals to his men, ordering them to tighten their perimeter and guard their flank and rear. He leaned closer to the scientist, grasping him by an arm and his uninjured leg, and hefting him into a fireman's carry. McKay muffled a groan of pain against the major's shoulder.

They made their way back towards the gate as quickly as possible with Lorne stopping every few minutes to check his lifesign detector and catch his breath. The scientist was no lightweight.

As they approached their destination, he chanced a whispered call on his radio. "This is Lorne, we have McKay and we're on our way back with company."

"Understood," was the sergeant's quiet reply.

"Is Rodney okay?" Beckett inquired, keeping his voice low as well

Lorne shifted the now limp bundle that across his shoulders slightly. "No." He forestalled any further questions. "Be ready to dial the gate. I have a feeling we're not getting out of here without a fight."

Beckett started to say something else but Sheppard cut him off with a "We'll be ready."

-o-

The whispered sounds of tree branches against clothing to their left caused Teyla and Ronon to raise the muzzles of their guns in that direction, expecting Lorne and his men, but leaving nothing to chance.

Sheppard started to rise, but Beckett's hand on his shoulder stopped him. "Stay put," said the doctor softly, pulling his own weapon from its holster and moving closer to the jumper's lowered hatch. He doubted the colonel would be able to stand, much less shoot straight while under the influence. Of course, he thought wryly, even in his current condition, the injured man could probably outshoot him.

Lorne's team broke cover and he and his men picked up their pace. Teyla had already entered the jumper and begun dialing. Ronon stood to the side of the clearing, his gun aimed behind them, ready to pick off any of the natives who might be overeager enough to be the first to break cover.

As the wormhole whooshed to life, Lorne entered the jumper and leaned down to let McKay roll off his shoulder, onto the bench opposite Sheppard, and into Beckett's waiting arms. He could see the doctor's eyes were drawn immediately to the blood covered pants. "It's bad."

Beckett gave him a nod of understanding and quickly radioed for a trauma team as Lorne made his way to the pilot's seat. He was still broadcasting orders as they exited the wormhole. The second the jumper landed, it was swarmed with medical personal. An orderly helped Beckett lift the scientist onto a waiting gurney even as a nurse was handing him a pair of scissors. Cutting away Rodney's pant leg in one smooth move, he grimaced at what he saw. "Gloves," he said to the nurse before he realized she holding out a pair, anticipating his needs. He slipped them on and nodded to her to loosen the tourniquet, knowing that every second counted. As the blood welled up anew, he called for a clamp.

The nurse started an I.V., a bright bag of blood clutched in her hand. "I need another clamp," snapped Carson. One was instantly placed in his waiting hands. After a few seconds, he pulled his hands back and held his breath, praying he had stopped the bleeding in time. "Let's get him to the infirmary."

As Carson's team rushed Rodney away, Weir turned to Lorne. "How bad was he?"

The major looked grim. "I'm not a doctor, ma'am."

Weir shook her head at the obfuscation. "Major…"

He pursed his lips and stopped holding back. "It looked bad. Really bad. He lost a lot of blood and there was the tourniquet. I don't know when it was put in place but if it was too long…"

"He could lose the leg," Sheppard finished for him.

Weir took a calming breath. "Alright, he's alive. Right now, that's the most important thing," she told them. Her eyes rested on Sheppard when she realized he was swaying a little and suddenly remembered that Ronon had said he had been injured. "John, are you okay?"

"He was hit by a staff weapon. His back is badly burned," said Teyla, reaching out automatically to steady the injured man. "He should be in the infirmary."

Sheppard shot her a look for the mother hen behavior, but didn't argue. The infirmary was where he wanted to be anyway. Weir was the one who voiced the thought though. "I think we all would like to be in the infirmary." She turned to Lorne. "Major, can you give us a briefing as we walk?"

Lorne nodded, pulling the P-90 from Sheppard's unresisting fingers and handing it and his own off to one of the men to return to the armory, Teyla and Ronon following suit. He fell in near Sheppard, so he could ostensibly watch the colonel and render his assistance if needed.

-o-

Muffled sounds and a strange smell tickled Rodney's senses. He couldn't think clearly enough to place them but there was something about them that made him feel safe and secure. Hands touched him at a muffled distance. Somewhere, nearby, he knew pain waited, but all he felt at the moment was a deep lethargy. There was something else, something important that he needed to know. It was too difficult to concentrate, though, and it slipped away as he sunk into oblivion.

"He's out," confirmed the anesthetist checking the monitors. Beckett nodded and moved the large suspended magnifying glass closer to his patient's leg before reaching toward a tray of gleaming instruments.


	7. Chapter 7

"He coded on the table but we got him back. We've stopped the bleeding and his blood volume is back up to an acceptable level," Beckett reported to the group, pulling off his blood-covered smock and depositing it into a waste bin.

"What about his leg?" asked Sheppard.

Carson shook his head. "We'll have to wait and see. He's not out of the woods yet," the doctor warned.

-o-

The second time, pain and heat brought Rodney closer to consciousness and he struggled against his Goa'uld captors. His leg hurt, his chest ached, his throat burned, and his head pounded unmercifully. It felt like his whole body was on fire. He had to get away…to make it stop.

"Rodney, take it easy," said Sheppard, grasping the flailing arms by the wrists. "Carson!"

The Scot came out of his office as if shot from a canon and was at the scientist's bedside in an instant. "Rodney?" he asked, grasping the scientist's face firmly between in his hands. "Rodney, can you hear me? Do you know where you are?" McKay's lids cracked open but the eyes behind them were glazed and unseeing as he continued to struggle weakly against Sheppard's grip. Beckett shook his head and grabbed a vial out of a cabinet. Filling a syringe, he injected the contents into the I.V. port and the scientist slowly stopped fighting and grew still. Sheppard released the wrists, placing Rodney's arms gently within the confines of the bed's aluminum safety rails.

Beckett pulled a thermometer out of his pocket and checked Rodney's temperature, grimacing at the reading. "His fever's spiking again," he said in response to Sheppard's silent inquiry.

"Can't you do anything?"

"We're pumping him full of antibiotics. Other than that, all we can do is treat the symptoms as they appear and hope the drugs we're giving him can knock out the infection before any of his vital organs are compromised," the Scot said grimly as he waved over one of the nurses and ordered cooling measures. Pulling the dressing back from Rodney's leg and lifting the Athosian poultice Teyla had recommended, he grimly examined the angry, seeping wound. In a marathon session, they had managed to repair the vascular damage to the scientist's leg, only to have all their hard work put at risk by a tenacious Pegasus-born infection. If they couldn't find something that worked against the bacteria soon, amputation might not even be enough to save the scientist in his current weakened state. Resigned to the fact that it would be awhile before they'd know if the latest antibiotic cocktail was working, Carson replaced poultice.

Glancing back up at Sheppard, he frowned when he realized how heavily the colonel was leaning on the aluminum railing. "You should be in bed, yourself, Colonel." The man had undergone surgery only the day before to remove the dead tissue and repair the damage done to his back.

Sheppard shook his head slightly, still studying the scientist's pale face. Beckett made his way around the foot of the bed and took him by the arm, steering the colonel back to his own bed, and frowning when he noticed spots of fresh blood on the back of his scrub top. "I can take a look at those stitches while they get the ice packs ready," he said, not taking 'no' for an answer and reached for a pair of gloves.

Knowing that Beckett was doing everything that he could for Rodney, Sheppard gave in and crawled back onto his bed. He lay flat on his stomach, wincing as the doctor removed the dressing and checked the long neat row of sutures down his back. "You pulled a few stitches free with that last stunt, but there doesn't appear to be any sign of infection." The doctor disappeared into the supply area and returned a minute later with butterfly strips, using them to reinforce the small area where the stitches had pulled free. "How are the headaches?"

"Almost gone," Sheppard murmured, his face pressed into his pillow.

The colonel's statement had the ring of truth and Beckett grunted, happy that at least something was going right. He had read through several old reports of Janet Frasier's that SGC had obliging sent during the last information exchange through the wormhole. They suggested that the ribbon device had no long-term effects except a persistent headache, which would eventually fade after a few days. That was assuming, of course, the victim wasn't killed outright to begin with. "Glad to hear it."

The nurse arrived with the icepacks and Beckett tiredly patted the colonel on his uninjured shoulder. "Try to keep still until your back has had some time to heal, please. One critical patient is more than enough."

-o-

Rodney woke to the familiar disjointed feeling that told him he was drugged to the gills. He struggled to open his eyes just enough to confirm he was indeed in the Atlantis infirmary and not some Goa'uld torture chamber. Letting them drift shut again, he was overcome by the nagging feeling that there was something important he needed to know. He fought the pull of the drugs, and his own exhaustion, forcing his foggy mind to cooperate. He vaguely remembered Lorne telling him Sheppard was safe. Then it came to him -- his leg, the tourniquet! He concentrated, trying to feel its presence -- too chicken to open his eyes and simply look.

The change in the tempo of the heart monitor alerted Beckett and he left Sheppard's bedside, where they had been talking to Weir, and made his way over to the scientist's bed. "Rodney?" He flicked his eyes toward the monitors, confirming the change he saw there, and then glanced toward the approaching Weir and Sheppard, giving the colonel a glare of disapproval, which the man promptly ignored. Returning his attention to his current patient, he reached over the safety rail and lightly rubbed McKay's chest with his knuckles. "Rodney, are you with us?" The scientist's eyes cracked open, and though a little glassy, Beckett was happy to see lucidity in the blue depths. "Are you in any pain?" he asked.

Rodney shook his head slightly. "Don't feel -- anything," he rasped, fear creeping into his voice.

"Everything's still there," Sheppard instantly assured him.

"Good," Rodney said, his voice fading to a mere whisper. "…good to know." The last word was more mouthed than spoken as his eyes fell shut.

Beckett glanced toward the monitors again. "His vitals are looking much better. What he needs now is rest." He looked pointedly at Sheppard.

"I know, I know. Back into bed," Sheppard groused, but there was a grin on his face.

-o-

Rodney watched from his bed in morbid fascination as Beckett slowly worked his way down Sheppard's back, pulling out tiny bits of black thread which were rapidly stacking up on a white towel, looking somewhat like a heap of tiny spiders. The colonel flinched every time one of small sutures came free. "Are we almost done yet, Doc?" he asked, the last word coming out in a yelp.

"Not even halfway. You sure you wouldn't like that local now?" the doctor asked dryly, pausing in his ministrations.

"What difference does it make whether it's a bunch of shots in my back or what you're doing now? It's still gonna hurt. Just get it over with, will ya?" He gripped the edge of the mattress a little more tightly and gritted his teeth against the bright sparks of pain as Beckett continued to remove the remaining stitches.

"Done," said the physician, putting down his instruments and blotting a few small pinpricks of blood with a piece of gauze. Carefully fingering the incision line, he was happy to note healthy pink skin along the scar.

Sheppard sighed in relief. "Finally!" He turned to look over his shoulder in a futile attempt to see the injury.

"You're still healing, so I want you to go gingerly this next week," said Beckett, picking up the colonel's chart and making a few notations. "No sparring with Teyla, wrestling with Ronon, or heavy lifting of any kind. You put enough strain on that area as it is by participating in simple day to day activities."

"Gotcha." Sheppard shrugged into his shirt. "Can I go, now?" he asked impatiently.

Beckett sighed. "Yes, you can go now." He rolled his eyes for patience as the man energetically hopped off the bed in complete disregard to the instructions he had just been given. "Colonel," he called after the man but Sheppard was already halfway out the door and waved without even turning.

"Go easy, I got it. Catch you later, McKay," he yelled as he disappeared into the corridor.

Still shaking his head, Beckett turned to his remaining patient. "How are _you_ feeling?"

"My leg is throbbing." He couldn't help the worry that crept into his voice.

Carson removed the dressing and checked the injury. "It looks good. You're just feeling it more now that we're backing you off the pain meds." He gave the scientist a frank look and rested a hip on the bed. "How bad is it, really? I can increase the dosage if necessary."

"It's okay, I can manage," replied Rodney. He knew what Beckett was worried about. It hadn't been that long since the enzyme incident and he didn't want a repeat of that experience any more than the doctor did. It had been far too easy to become dependent. A little discomfort was a small price to pay now to keep the same thing from happening again.

"Alright," the doctor agreed, rising. "But if it gets too bad, let me know. I can give you something else to take the edge off. You do need rest to heal."

"That's all I've been doing," complained the scientist. Now that Sheppard had been released, he didn't even have a roomie to distract him from his boredom anymore.

-o-

Sheppard tapped lightly on the door but didn't receive an answer. Turning to leave he was startled when it opened.

"Colonel," acknowledged the Athosian. "I am glad to see Dr. Beckett has deemed you well enough to be released.

"Yeah," he agreed. "Look, um, I just wanted to know if you were okay?"

"My ankle is much better, thank you," she replied.

"That's not really what I meant."

Teyla ducked her head, hiding the emotions that churned just below the surface. "I am fine."

He cocked his head at her. She sighed and stood aside, obliquely inviting him to enter.

Taking a seat in the only chair in the room, he waited for her to settle herself on the edge of the bed. "I'm not going to pretend to know what you're feeling right now, but I'm willing to bet guilt is part of it." He paused. "Not that you should be feeling guilty if you aren't," he quickly backpedaled. "But I know you made a promise to Melosh, and it would make sense if you felt bad that you wouldn't… I mean couldn't fulfill it… What I mean to say is, you have every right to feel the way you do, whether you feel guilt or, um, not." Taking a deep breath, he stood. "You know, I'm just going to leave now," he said, lamely as he backed toward the door.

"Colonel," Teyla called softly just before the door closed.

He stuck his head back in.

"Thank you."

He smiled at her and left.


	8. Chapter 8

"We need to go back."

"_Excuse_ me?" said Weir. She and Sheppard were having coffee in her office. "I don't think I heard you correctly."

"We can't leave a jumper on that planet -- _especially_ on that planet. The Goa'uld _love_ Ancient technology. They figured out the gate system and how to use it to subjugate an entire galaxy. Do you really want to leave a full-functioning jumper on that planet?"

Weir pursed her lips, momentarily stymied and Sheppard pressed his advantage. "Elizabeth, I know you have reservations about this," he held up a hand as her eyebrows disappeared into her hair at his understatement, "but you also know what the Goa'uld are capable of."

She shook her head. "Assuming I approve this mission – and I'm not saying I am, is Rodney even up to it?"

"I was planning on taking Zelenka instead."

Weir frowned at his tone, something told her it wasn't concern for McKay's health that led Sheppard's decision. "Why?"

"Well, like you said, Rodney's leg…" he said, lamely.

She narrowed her eyes. "Fine." He was obviously avoiding the real issue but she was not ready to draw him into a full-fledged battle at the moment. She doubted Carson would have approved of Rodney's participation anyway. "If you can get one of the scientists to go with you, you have a go," she said, knowing he'd never get Radek or anyone else from the science department back through the gate to that planet. After all, they read mission reports, too. Most had heard how badly their department head had been injured on his last mission.

-o-

Crutches clunked against the floor rhythmically as Rodney struggled to catch up to Sheppard in the hall. "I hear you're going back for the jumper."

"Yeah."

"Stop for a second, will you?" he called, panting. He was relieved when the colonel halted and let him catch up. "When do we leave?" he asked, still puffing and wincing as an injudicious movement sent a stab of pain through his thigh.

"_We_ don't. Zelenka is coming."

"Oh, yeah, right. He was in the infirmary when they changed my dressing one day, you're not going to get him within thirty-two thousand light years of the place, which -- what do you know? -- is _exactly_ how far away we are right now."

Sheppard gritted his teeth and paced, knowing McKay was right and hating it -- no amount of gentle persuasion or outright threats had managed to move the Czech. He stopped suddenly and spun around, pinning the scientist to the wall with his forearm and ignoring Rodney's yelp of pain as he lost his balance and put too much weight on his sore leg. "Fine, if Beckett okays it, you can come. But let's just get one thing straight: It's _my_ job to walk in front of bullets. It's _your_ job to fix jumpers, _not_ participate in misguided heroics -- fix jumpers, make nuclear bombs, and blow up solar systems," said Sheppard, ticking the items off on the fingers of his free hand. "You got that?"

Rodney cocked his head at him, searching his eyes, and finally understanding. "Got it," he said simply.

Sheppard seemed a little taken aback by the unexpectedly amenable response. "Good." He released Rodney, helping him catch his balance. "It's not like you're going to get Beckett to agree anyway," he muttered.

-o-

Carson was on the verge of questioning the scientist's sanity. "Rodney, you're barely out of the infirmary, and still on crutches. There's no way I'm clearing you for a mission."

"First of all, it's not really a mission. It's more of a scoop and run."

"Semantics."

Rodney rolled his eyes. "The point is -- we need to get the ship back. We can't do that with a shield around it and I can't remove the shield unless I'm there." He tried a different tactic. "Look, there will be a whole jumper full of marines with us, armed to the teeth." As Carson drew a breath to argue, he continued, "_And_ we'll use the lifesigns detector on the ship before we land, to make sure there's not an army of natives hiding behind the rocks waiting to ambush us. What could go wrong?" There was a stunned silence as both men processed the last statement. "Forget I said that," Rodney quickly amended.

"Why can't Radek go?"

"It's not a matter of _can't. _He _won't_."

"Have you even asked him?"

"He told Sheppard the only way the colonel was getting him to _that_ planet was to…" He paused, trying to recall the exact wording. "'…take cold, dead, rotting corpse through gate, kicking and screaming'. So I'm guessing that's a 'no'."

"Your leg is barely healed…"

"I don't need to run a marathon to fix a shield on a jumper. It's mostly just laptop work. I'll probably get less exercise there then I would here." Beckett was still shaking his head, unconvinced. "Look, Carson, we can't leave a jumper in the hands of a Goa'uld. They're really good when it comes to scavenging technology, especially Ancient technology. It might even be able to override the gene requirement. Who knows what it'd do with a fully working jumper? I've destroyed their power source and cloaking system, so now the Wraith will know there's a smorgasbord waiting for them on the planet. What if it tries to form an alliance with them when they arrive? The navigational data in the jumper will lead them right back here to our front door. Not to mention that neither Sheppard nor I remember what we might have said under the influence of that hand device."

"Now you're reaching," said Beckett. "What are the chances it would be able to form some sort of alliance with the Wraith?"

"Are you willing to take that risk? Did you really enjoy the last Wraith attack on Atlantis so much that you'd like to do the whole thing all over again?"

The doctor looked a bit uncertain as the memories of the last Wraith siege came screaming back. "Surely there's someone else…"

"No, there isn't. Look, I want to finish what we started. I -- I _need_ to do this, Carson," he finally admitted.

-o-

"I'm reading only one lifesign nearby," announced Lorne from the co-pilot's seat.

"Okay, I'm putting her down."

A slew of marines exited, taking up positions on either side of both jumpers.

Sheppard put an arm out when Rodney would have followed them and checked his handheld lifesign detector before he tucked it in his vest, stepping in front of the scientist. "Come out with your hands where I can see them," he called, gripping his P-90.

Melosh appeared, hand out at his sides. "I am unarmed."

Lorne cautiously patted the man down, confirming he carried no weapons. "I killed you once, I have no problems doing it again," said the major quietly before backing away, his P-90 still trained on the man.

"Maybe Beckett could, you know, with the Asgard beaming technology," began Ronon softly to Rodney.

The scientist shook his head, remembering their last encounter. "This is different. I think Melosh is happy he can serve his god in this way."

Sheppard nodded for Rodney to get to work on the other jumper now that he knew Melosh was no threat. The former Athosian's eyes had never left Teyla's form.

Teyla returned his regard for a moment. "What do you want, Melosh?" she finally asked.

He began walking toward her. "I came to talk to you. I knew you would come back."

"That's far enough," said Sheppard, raising his P-90 at the man, who stopped.

Teyla shook her head sadly. "We have nothing to say to each other."

Melosh's eyes glowed. "I could be very helpful to you," said Denwen. He turned to include the entire company in his glance. "All of you."

"We don't need the kind of help a Goa'uld could provide," said Sheppard

Melosh lowered his head, then looked back up. "You know what is wrong with you, Teyla Emmagan?" he asked in his normal voice. "You have no faith."

"I have faith, Melosh -- faith in my friends." Her wave encompassed her team.

Rodney looked up in surprise to find himself included in her gesture, but then gave a small, pleased harrumph as he turned back to his laptop. With the entry of one last command, the shield glowed blue for a second, then vanished. "That should do it."

Melosh took another step forward, realizing his time was running out. "Think of what we could accomplish, Teyla."

"You're a _Goa'uld_," said Sheppard.

"I am the sum of the best of both." He turned to Teyla. "With you at my side, we could rule an empire. I could cover you with jewels and bend entire worlds to your every whim. You would be a queen!"

"Are you ready to go?" Sheppard asked Teyla quietly.

"Yes," she said, turning to follow him.

Melosh stared at her in disbelief, unable to fathom her refusal.

She turned back toward him and paused a moment before entering the jumper. "You never really knew me at all."

END

* * *

AN & Credits: 

From the Gods and Mythology of Ancient Egypt website:  
Denwen - The Fiery Serpent  
Wadjet - The Serpent Goddess

Ronon's hair comment provided by hubby :-)

I actually started working on this before "Critical Mass" but then I had to do some editing to make it fit with the current canon once I saw the episode. Hopefully it has all been integrated seamlessly but if you find a glitch, lemme know.


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